System and Apparatus to Create a Configurable Rail System and Support for Food Well Displays

ABSTRACT

A configurable rail and pan system for a food well having a plurality of extended rigid bars and cross bars with cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed inverted T-shaped lower portion, rectangular and square pans with upper ledges having lips for stable engagement on the U-shaped rail, wherein the rigid rail is mounted on a food well for stable support of the rail, where cross bars are engaged block ends. The pans are stackable, and the bars may be made of any rigid or semi-rigid material.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 62/507,267 filed May 17, 2017 entitled “Perfect Fit System and Apparatus” which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to food service pans and more particularly to a system and apparatus to create a configurable rail system and support for food well displays as well as solve other issues which are inherent to cold well and other displays.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Prior art systems of pan presentation of food and other items typically involved a metal container that sat or was positioned in an opening of a flat metal counter with individual pre-determined openings for the different sized pans. It was not designed well for cold storage items nor could it be configured to a customer's particular needs and changed by the customer after initial placement of the entire counter and system.

The present invention overcomes many of the problems present in prior art systems and creates a configurable and easily removable set of pans for food presentation and delivery.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the inventions there is shown a configurable rail and pan system for a food well having a plurality of extended rigid bars each having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion; a rectangular pan, which may be square, having four upper edges with at least two opposing upper ledges with curtain extensions that extend a portion of the upper ledge and each extension forming a lip for stable engagement on the U-shaped upper portion of a rail; the extended rail having end tabs connected to the U-shaped upper portion that extend beyond the T-shaped lower portions; wherein the rigid rail is mounted by its tab on a food well for stable support of the rail; and the lip is placed over the U-shaped portion of the rail for stable engagement of the pan to the rail.

In accordance with another preferred embodiment of the inventions there is shown a configurable rail and pan system for a food well having a plurality of longitudinal members having two ends, each member having a cross sectional U-shaped body have two upper edges; a rectangular, including a square, pan having at least two opposing upper edges with downward extensions each forming an overhang for stable engagement on one upper edge of the U-shaped portion of a rail; wherein the member is mounted on each end to a food well for stable support; and the downward extension of the pan is placed over the U-shaped portion of the member for stable engagement of the pan to the member.

In accordance with another preferred embodiment of the inventions there is shown a configurable rail and pan system for a food well having a plurality of extended rigid bars each having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion; at least one transverse mounting bar having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion and extended first and second ends, each end fixedly attached to the rigid bars on one of its ends; a rectangular, including square, pan having at least two opposing upper ledges with overhanging extensions each extension forming a gap for stable engagement on the U-shaped upper portion of one bar; wherein the rigid bar is mounted on a food well for stable support of the rail; and the overhang is placed over the U-shaped portion of the bar for stable engagement of the pan to the bar.

A primary advantage of the invention is to provide an easily configurable support system for food service wells with the ability for the pan to be secured to the rail system.

Another advantage of the invention is to provide a food service well system that supports various sizes of food pans.

Yet another advantage of the invention is to provide food pans that are easily stackable and may be stably supported on a rail system in a food well.

Still yet another advantage of the invention is to provide pans that have a corner cut out for easy insertion and removal from the rail system of a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Additional objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments when taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein like reference numerals refer to corresponding parts in the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The drawings constitute a part of this disclosure and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that, in some instances, various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of a mounting rail in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a side view of a mounting rail in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1C is a cross sectional view along C-C of FIG. 1B of a mounting rail in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a perspective view of a pan in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2B is a plan view of a pan in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a corner detail of a pan in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an arrangement of pans and rails in a well display in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of a side rail and mount to a main rail in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the bar of the present invention.

FIG. 5B is a perspective view of a side rail mounted to a main rail in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the bar of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a group of stackable pans in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed descriptions of preferred embodiments of the invention are provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art how to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or manner.

The present invention has been designed with a special elevated corner on each of the four corners of the pan, which helps to lift the pan out of the food well. This channel is on the underside of the channel and allows a gap between the chill well and the underside of the pan. A chill well is commonly used in salad bars and buffet pans. This allows the operator to easily stick their finger under the corner of the pan and lift it out of the chill well.

The present invention also has been designed with a special stacking pan with foot which allows one pan to easily nest into a pan below it to help food service operators with storage in their facilities. This secure stacking design allows for the end user to safely store their pans in the smallest amount of space. This ability to stack the pans also saves the pans from falling over during storage thus reducing damage to the pans.

Under the pan side upper corner there is a recessed channel. This channel accepts the specially designed support and mounting bars which hold the pans in place during use in the chill well. Currently pans can easily slide off the mounting bars into the food well. This creates a mess in the food well and the end user can potentially loose valuable food product when this occurs.

Turning now to FIGS. 1A, B and C, there is shown several views of a mounting bar of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A shows a perspective view of a preferably rigid or semi-rigid mounting bar 10. Mounting bar 10 is generally elongated in a longitudinal dimension with an upper portion 20 and lower portion 22. Upper portion 20 is comprised of a generally U-shaped cross sectional portion 23 having two opposing rails 12 and center portion 14. Integrally formed or connected to upper portion 20 is a lower portion 22 that is generally configured in an inverted elongated T 16 that is integrally attached to upper portion 20. The length of upper portion 20 is preferably extended farther on each end of mounting bar 10 so that tabs 17 overhang providing a lip for stable placement of the mounting rail on a food well edge.

Opposing rails 12 are configured for stable placement of food pans on a mating channel further described below. Lower portion 22 is configured in an elongated T shape to provide further rigidity to mounting bar 10 and permit placement of additional mounting assemblies orthogonal to mounting bar 10 as further described below. FIG. 1B shows a side elevation view of mounting bar 10. Tabs or overhangs 17 are shown extending a short portion past lower portion 22 but may be of any size to accommodate placement on an edge of a food well, or within other mounting locations on the food well. As shown on FIG. 1A, tabs 17 on each end of mounting bar 10 may have tapered opposing rails 11 that slope downward to meet edge 15 of mounting bar 10. Tabs 17 may be simply an extension of the center portion 14 between opposing rails 12.

FIG. 1C is a cross sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 1B showing the configuration of the mounting bar in a preferred embodiment. Upper portion 20 is preferably U-shaped and has two opposing rails 12. Opposing rails 12 are of a size to accommodate a channel on one of the four sides of a rectilinear pan and typically will be of a dimension to fit inside the channel for stable engagement.

The bar can be made to any length to accommodate the customer well size and be made to fit with any of a variety of pan sizes. The bar is mounted in the well by conventional attachments which may include additional hardware, a mounting slot, or other permanent or fixedly removable mechanisms, including a frictional fit. This permits ease of configuration and changing of the pan setup. The bar is also stable and provides a positive engagement to the channel of the pan as further described below.

The upper side of the bar has two raised rails that permit placement of one channel of one pan on one rail, and another channel of another pan on the other rail. As more fully seen in FIG. 4, a variety of different sized pans may be mounted.

FIG. 2A shows a perspective view of a pan 30 with an open space 40 for placement of food with four upper edges 32 having underside channels 33 or slots for placement on the rails of the mounting bar extended from a ledge 41 from edge 32. Underside channels 33 are formed as overhangs to each of the four sides of the rectangular pan 30 forming a rigid curtain or lip 43. Corners 34 of pan 30 are designed with an open configuration to permit easy access and removal of the pan when placed near other pans. Pan 30 has four sidewalls 38 that are tapered inward, and a base 36 having a tapered sidewall 39 that is generally the same rectangular shape as pan 30 but of a somewhat smaller dimension than the outer periphery of sidewalls 38. Tapered base 36 has an outside bottom surface 37 as shown in FIG. 2B that comprises the outside bottom of pan 30.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention has been designed with open corners 34 on each of the four corner edges of pan 30. Underside channel 33 extends for a portion of each side upper edge 32 of pan 30 and allows a gap between the chill well and the underside of the pan. A chill well is commonly used in salad bars and buffet pans. This allows the operator to easily stick their finger under the corner of the pan and lift it out of the chill well.

FIG. 3 shows a cutaway partial view of pan 30 and corner 34. Upper edge 32 has curtain 35 extended downward forming underside channel 33 that abuts sidewall 38 of pan 30. Curtain 35 extends a portion of the upper edge 32 of pan 30 forming an opening 31 on corner 34 in the void formed by curtain 35 not extending the full length of the width or length of pan 30 as the case may be. This leaves a corner triangular edge of pan 30 accessible when pan 30 is positioned on mounting bar 10 next to another pan on the opposing rails of the same bar.

FIG. 4 shows a number of pans including a cutaway pan 50, smaller pan 52, and larger pan 54 mounted on bar 58 shown in partial view. Bar 58 would normally be mounted on both ends on the lip of the chill well. As is readily apparent, pan 54 is mounted on the same mounting bar as pan 56 but on the opposing rails as seen in FIG. 1. Similarly, pans 50 and 52 are shown mounted on the opposing rail from the other side of pan 54 which is mounted on bar 59. Again, mounting bars 57 and 59 are shown in a cutaway partial view and would normally extend to the other side of the chill well, or would connect to another mounting rail as further described below. Each pan sits on one of the two opposing rails to create a tight fit between pans and a clean appearance. In this drawing, the corners are not shown as two pans are in a cross sectional appearance. The larger pan in the Figure is also shown without the corner cut-out in an alternative embodiment.

FIGS. 5A and 5B show a mounting bar 60 that is mounted to a transverse mounting rail 64 using adapter 62. Both side mounting bar 60 and transvers mounting bar 64 have a pair of opposing rails for placement of pans. The cross sectional dimension of side mounting bar is similar to mounting bar 10 as shown in FIG. 1C. Adapter 62 is a generally square or rectangular block that is fixedly attached to the side mounting bar and permits insertion into the central leg of the inverted T formed in transverse mounting bar 64 between the upper portion 20 and lower portion 22 as depicted in FIG. 1C. Adapter 62 may be made of a similar rigid material as bar 60 which includes metal, plastic, or other rigid or semi-rigid materials. Adapter 62 may be soldered to transverse mounting bar 64 or held by rivet or other conventional means. In an alternative embodiment, adapter 62 may be integrally formed with mounting bar 64.

Side mounting bar 60 may have the extension 17 as shown in FIG. 1A, in addition to a lower extension of the inverted T-shaped portion to facilitate stable placement of adapter 62 which in turn is inserted into the mating lower portion 22 of mounting bar 64. It appears somewhat similar to an I-beam but has opposing raised rails on one side of each of the longitudinal sides to permit mounting of the pans in the well. The bars can be cut to any size to fit the particular well, and by using a different spacing of the mounting bars, different sized pans can be accommodated.

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of a plurality of pans capable of stacking due to the tapered sidewalls 38, underside channels 33 and tapered base 36. This configuration allows one pan to easily nest into a pan below it to help food service operators with storage in their facilities. This secure stacking design allows for the end user to safely store their pans in the smallest amount of storage space and saves the pans from falling over during storage thus reducing damage to the pans.

The pans may be of any of a variety of materials including metal, coated metal, plastic or other suitable materials. In one preferred embodiment the pan is a cast aluminum pan with a coating that can withstand the expansion and contraction of a food pan as it is used throughout the day at a food service operation. The coating is designed to withstand commercial dishwashing and refrigerated use. It is scratch resistant and holds up well to all food groups used in a salad bar. The coating may have a smooth finish to allow for easy cleaning. The coating is food safe and capable of passing an NSF® (third party certification entity) inspection.

The method and system of the current invention may be employed in conjunction with any of a variety of diagnostic engines or systems appropriate to the machine or device involved. Further, the method and system may be integrated into existing food pans and display bars already in place at an enterprise or facility.

Although described with reference to preferred embodiments of the invention, it should be readily understood that various changes and/or modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit thereof. In general, the invention is only intended to be limited by the scope of the issued claims. 

1. A configurable rail and pan system for a food well comprising: a) a plurality of extended rigid bars each having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion; b) a rectangular pan having four upper edges with at least two opposing upper ledges with curtain extensions that extend a portion of the upper ledge and each extension forming a lip for stable engagement on the U-shaped upper portion of a rail; c) the extended rail having end tabs connected to the U-shaped upper portion that extend beyond the T-shaped lower portions; d) wherein the rigid rail is mounted by its tab on a food well for stable support of the rail; and e) the lip is placed over the U-shaped portion of the rail for stable engagement of the pan to the rail.
 2. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well of claim 1 further comprising a tab on the mounting bar that has tapered side walls.
 3. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well of claim 1 further comprising a pan with curtain extensions on two additional opposing ledges.
 4. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well of claim 1 further comprising a third extended rigid rail having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion.
 5. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well of claim 4 further comprising adapter blocks for engaging the third rail to the lower portion of each of the two extended rails.
 6. A configurable rail and pan system for a food well comprising: a) a plurality of longitudinal members having two ends, each member having a cross sectional U-shaped body having two upper edges; b) a rectangular pan having at least two opposing upper edges with downward extensions each forming an overhang for stable engagement on one upper edge of the U-shaped portion of a rail; c) wherein the member is mounted on each end to a food well for stable support; and d) the downward extension of the pan is placed over the U-shaped portion of the member for stable engagement of the pan to the member.
 7. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 6 wherein the pan has 4 tapered side-walls.
 8. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 6 further comprising a downward extension on an edge orthogonal to the opposing upper edges that extend a portion of the edge of the pan forming a corner without downward extensions.
 9. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 6 further comprising a transverse mounting bar that engages on each of its ends to a longitudinal member.
 10. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 6 further comprising a tab integrally formed on each end of the longitudinal member.
 11. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 6 further comprising a tapered rectangular foot on the bottom of the pan.
 12. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 9 further comprising an adapter block integral to the transverse bar.
 13. A configurable rail and pan system for a food well comprising: a) a plurality of extended rigid bars each having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion; b) at least one transverse mounting bar having a longitudinal cross sectional U-shaped upper portion, and an integrally formed longitudinal cross sectional inverted T-shaped lower portion and extended first and second ends, each end fixedly attached to the rigid bars on one of its ends; c) a rectangular pan having at least two opposing upper ledges with overhanging extensions each extension forming a gap for stable engagement on the U-shaped upper portion of one bar; d) wherein the rigid bar is mounted on a food well for stable support of the rail; and e) the overhang is placed over the U-shaped portion of the bar for stable engagement of the pan to the bar.
 14. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 further comprising a blocked end on each end of the transverse mounting bar.
 15. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 having a flat upper edge with downward extensions from the end of the ledge.
 16. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 wherein the transverse bar has a cross sectional U-shaped upper portion integrally formed with an inverted cross sectional T-shaped portion.
 17. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 wherein adapter blocks are integrally formed with the T-shaped portion of the extended rigid bar and the end of the transverse mounting bar.
 18. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 wherein the transverse mounting bar has extended tabs on the upper and lower portions of the bar.
 19. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 further comprising a second pan that stacks into the pan.
 20. The configurable rail and pan system for a food well as claimed in claim 13 wherein the corner of the pan is void of any downward extensions. 